Geography at Field End Junior School
Intent
Our aim is for all children to become mastery learners, confident orators, active learners and lifelong readers.
In Geography, this means that all children are encouraged to be engaged and inspired by a well-designed and sequential curriculum that promotes curiosity and interest in our world. They are encouraged to develop a greater understanding and knowledge of the world, as well as their place in it.
The design of the geography curriculum at Field End Junior School enables children to become mastery learners through the development of key knowledge and skills. Our progression of skills ensures that the curriculum is sequential and builds on previous learning.
Our intent, when teaching geography, is to inspire children to become active learners and develop a fascination about the world and people within it; to promote their interest and understanding of diverse places, cultures, resources and natural and human environments, together with a deep understanding of the Earth’s key physical and human processes. Opportunities are planned into the lessons for pupils to express and justify their ideas and opinions (confident orators) using concepts they have learnt.
Offsite education ensure for children the experience learning beyond the classroom and hone skills such as compass reading, map reading and reading grid references. The focus on disciplinary reading ensures that children become lifelong readers develop their reading skills through the material with a geographical content.
Implementation
Geography is taught throughout the year so that children achieve depth in their learning. In Geography, our curriculum is shaped by our school vision, which enables all children, regardless of background, ability or additional needs, to flourish becoming the very best version of themselves that they can possibly be.
Planning is informed by and aligned with the national curriculum and staff have access to plans and resources produced by the Rising Stars scheme which are adapted to suit the needs of our learners.
Our curriculum is delivered through quality-first teaching. The scheme is knowledge-rich and provides significant opportunities for enrichment including outdoor learning, inspirational visitors and fieldtrips. Each unit is divided into a series of lessons are planned with clear knowledge and skills-based learning objectives and subject-specific vocabulary. There is a ‘big finish’ (planned outcome) and the skills that are required to be taught throughout and revisited at the end of the unit are identified. Within each unit, key/new vocabulary is listed and the expectation is that they are taught to the children.
Teachers assess learning in geography against knowledge and skills-based learning objectives within unit overviews which is monitored closely by the subject lead. Within our teaching and learning, we ensure that children have access to a wide range of resources that will support the embedding of knowledge for all pupils.
Impact
Children develop knowledge of the world around them and an understanding of diverse places, cultures, resources and natural and human environments.
Children can name the location of an increasing number of countries, other regions and features.
Children develop their geographical skills (use of compass, map reading)
